Studio Tour

[Viator]

I see the tram coming to an end in the near future. Don't hate me, just my opinion.

I doubt the Studio Tour will ever be "ending".

Worst case scenario, they augment and change the experience to be dedicated to VIP-Based touring experiences (And they change a lot more in the process as part of it); but the Studio Tour is the icon of the park. You remove it, you remove the beating heart of Universal Studios Hollywood. Also helps that they just invested a bit of capital into the prospect of electrification for the whole fleet.

Will a relocation happen though? Probably. They will need to address the current Studio Tour plaza eventually (I argue sooner than later) to a point of where the current location harms potential future growth of the park at large. But as it stands now--they are not removing the Studio Tour.

 

[Pacific]

I see the tram coming to an end in the near future. Don't hate me, just my opinion.

Can I ask why?

 

[DrStarlander]

I recently went on the tram for the first time in decades and as an outsider now (and out-of-stater at this point, bringing teenage boys there for their first visit), my impression was that the tour was tired/worn out, somewhat underwhelming as far as evoking Hollywood/film-making, "cringey" at times and...drumroll please...full of potential. By that I mean:

Regardless of what other Universal Studios parks there are in the world, or movie-making themed parks in general (Disney Hollywood Studios, I'm looking at you), Universal Studios Hollywood is "legit" a working studio. And people (especially out-of-staters) are there for it. While the tram does not currently exploit that special attribute like it could using modern theme park -- and exhibit industry -- presentation approaches, it could, and maybe it will. It could be not only the jewel of the park, as it always has been, but an even more iconic jewel of Los Angeles area tourism.

Here are some examples to plus-up the tour:

• In the queue there are some printed graphics about the history of Universal Studios Hollywood and the tour. They're nice, but the queue area is a cattle-pen type environment. Imagine an indoor queue with a more respectful/refined "Hollywood glamour" vibe that gets guests hyped up about USH's history. You could walk past glass museum-style display cases with amazing props and artifacts showcasing the studio's legacy. You could walk past office doors of the celebrities/historical figures who worked and created at the studio and eavesdrop on conversations about famous movies in production. The point here is that they're not "treating" their own studio with the deference or romanticization it deserves.

• On the tour there are places where they say "X movie was filmed here" and guests need to use their imaginations to comprehend that in an impactful way. It would be great if at one or two of those places, they actually recreated what it looked like while they were shooting, with all the lighting, rigs, camera, directors chairs, etc. This would bring the movie-making, behind-the-scenes feel to life. The cast and crew could be statues or even animatronics, but they could also be represented in a more abstracted edutainment "museum-style" approach. For example, they could be represented by 2" thick silhouette cut-outs made from tinted acrylic/plexiglas plastic. Imagine 50 of these "people" all doing things like holding lights and working cameras, etc. You see all the people involved but as they are translucent you see through them like ghosts, they'd let the famous film set area you're touring still be "the star." This is just an example but in the exhibit industry -- museums, historical sites/visitor's centers -- there are display techniques that could make sense on the tour even if you'd ordinarily not see them in a theme park.

• There are a lot of famous celebrities who have contributed to Universal Studios history but while many are mentioned, they're not represented as much as I'd expect. On the same trip to LA where we went to USH we also went to the Hollywood Wax Musuem. My oldest son wanted to go and the rest of us were like "No way, that will be so lame...and it's expensive!" But he convinced us to do it and I'm so glad we did. It was awesome! The wax figures were stunning, and the way they were presented was cool and interactive, with photo-posing potential. And it really "celebrated" these celebrities well. So, to bring this back to USH: I think including statues or wax figures of Universal celebrities in the queue or just posed as working on the lot, would be very impactful. For example, how about a bronze statue of Alfred Hitchcock walking, smoking a cigar or something, near the bungalow he lived at? Imagine a few dozen bronze statues like that sprinkled around the tour.

• This is a bigger project than the ones above, but I think the overall narrative arc of the tour could be improved with a better ending. And I don't just mean a better attraction ending that is based on any given movie (Fast & Furious, E.T., Back to the Future). Those are cool possibilities and should be included on the tour, but by better ending I mean a true "coda" for the experience that pulls it all together and sums it up, and gives guests the message in a package to take with them. For example, after being driven all over the lot and seeing soundstages and backlot areas and a few thematic attraction experiences, all of which are cool but kind of random in sequence, it would be great if the tram pulled up to a classic cinema with a huge marquee. The narrator would powerfully intone that THIS is what it's all about: the magic of movies. This is where the payoff happens...at the theater...And the tram would drive into the theater and down the center aisle of the theater and there would be some powerful, arm-hair-raising words and multi-sensory experience which makes guests LOVE "the movies" and LOVE Universal Studios.

Okay, I just wanted to focus on some relatively reasonable things that could be done, not massive "attraction" upgrades (which would also be cool). But I think the tour is just under-exploited and could be enhanced. The Universal Creative team should definitely go to some fantastic historic/recreation sites for inspiration about techniques, not just theme parks.

 

[Rideguy70]

On the tour there are places where they say "X movie was filmed here" and guests need to use their imaginations to comprehend that in an impactful way. It would be great if at one or two of those places, they actually recreated what it looked like while they were shooting, with all the lighting, rigs, camera, directors chairs, etc. This would bring the movie-making, behind-the-scenes feel to life. The cast and crew could be statues or even animatronics, but they could also be represented in a more abstracted edutainment "museum-style" approach. For example, they could be represented by 2" thick silhouette cut-outs made from tinted acrylic/plexiglas plastic. Imagine 50 of these "people" all doing things like holding lights and working cameras, etc. You see all the people involved but as they are translucent you see through them like ghosts, they'd let the famous film set area you're touring still be "the star." This is just an example but in the exhibit industry -- museums, historical sites/visitor's centers -- there are display techniques that could make sense on the tour even if you'd ordinarily not see them in a theme park.

I would imagine one big problem with doing something like this is the fact that all these spaces get used constantly for filming, so an "exhibit" like that, while a good idea, would constantly be having to be put away and replaced. And it'd probably be away more than it would be displayed. So I get why it's not super practical. At least they can now show you excerpts of the sets with the video screens! Before they were installed, you just had to take the guide's description for it.

There are a lot of famous celebrities who have contributed to Universal Studios history but while many are mentioned, they're not represented as much as I'd expect. On the same trip to LA where we went to USH we also went to the Hollywood Wax Musuem. My oldest son wanted to go and the rest of us were like "No way, that will be so lame...and it's expensive!" But he convinced us to do it and I'm so glad we did. It was awesome! The wax figures were stunning, and the way they were presented was cool and interactive, with photo-posing potential. And it really "celebrated" these celebrities well. So, to bring this back to USH: I think including statues or wax figures of Universal celebrities in the queue or just posed as working on the lot, would be very impactful. For example, how about a bronze statue of Alfred Hitchcock walking, smoking a cigar or something, near the bungalow he lived at? Imagine a few dozen bronze statues like that sprinkled around the tour.

I don't know, locally, the HWM is kind of a joke. I've enjoyed it a few times for it's cheesy value, but don't take it real seriously. I'd argue Madame Tussauds does a better job in that department. But that's exactly the issue... there's already one just a stone's throw away from USH.

I certainly wouldn't argue more of a museum like the Warner Brothers Tour has. That's pretty impressive. But it would also take away real estate for attractions.

This is a bigger project than the ones above, but I think the overall narrative arc of the tour could be improved with a better ending. And I don't just mean a better attraction ending that is based on any given movie (Fast & Furious, E.T., Back to the Future). Those are cool possibilities and should be included on the tour, but by better ending I mean a true "coda" for the experience that pulls it all together and sums it up, and gives guests the message in a package to take with them. For example, after being driven all over the lot and seeing soundstages and backlot areas and a few thematic attraction experiences, all of which are cool but kind of random in sequence, it would be great if the tram pulled up to a classic cinema with a huge marquee. The narrator would powerfully intone that THIS is what it's all about: the magic of movies. This is where the payoff happens...at the theater...And the tram would drive into the theater and down the center aisle of the theater and there would be some powerful, arm-hair-raising words and multi-sensory experience which makes guests LOVE "the movies" and LOVE Universal Studios.

There's some hope that whatever is replacing F&F may be more like this.

 

[DrStarlander]

I'd argue Madame Tussauds does a better job in that department.

Whoops. To clarify, we went to Madame Tussauds. (I didn't realize there were two wax museums!)

 

[BillM]

That only happens if USH closes permanently. Which isn't happening any-time soon. It's literally the centerpiece attraction of Universal Hollywood and is what makes this park truly special and unique. Why would you think this?

Just my opinion.

 

[Clive]

They've looked at the logistics/potential impacts of dismantling the studio tour before (or making it exclusively a VIP/upcharge offering). It never happens. It's too popular.

Think about the year they tried not doing Terror Tram for Horror Nights. Terror Tram is hardly as important or as beloved as the daytime Studio Tour, yet the general public still revolted, and it was back the next year.

 

[Viator]

Just my opinion.

It’s one thing that you have an opinion, but perhaps you could expand on that take to see why you think of that matter? I think people were trying to ask for elaboration from your part.

Think about the year they tried not doing Terror Tram for Horror Nights. Terror Tram is hardly as important or as beloved as the daytime Studio Tour, yet the general public still revolted, and it was back the next year.

I feel like that eventually, this will need to be a topic that is brought up again (especially if they relocate the tour to begin at a different location than that of the Upper Lot. I wonder at what point will it be too expensive to operate, especially if they reposition the plaza to be farther away from that of the WoTW/Psycho sets.

 

[Wesker69]

Studio Tour is actually becoming less expensive to operate with the discontinuation of gas-guzzling diesel trams. The swap out to electric makes it cheaper, more quiet & energy efficient. GREEN IS UNIVERSAL!

As for a museum... we had that roughly 10 years ago where the former Lucy Tribute was on the Lower Lot. It is now the grab-n-go food place next to Panda. Lucy was a museum, then they had the USH film/theme park museum with props, costumes, concept art etc

 

[Red Carpet]

I predict that in the future AI will replace most traditional film making. Universal might not need the backlot sets anymore and could expand the theme park or even add a second gate.

 

[saint.piss]

I predict that in the future AI will replace most traditional film making. Universal might not need the backlot sets anymore and could expand the theme park or even add a second gate.

 

[Viator]

I predict that in the future AI will replace most traditional film making. Universal might not need the backlot sets anymore and could expand the theme park or even add a second gate.

AI will be prevalent in film as a supporting element. If you genuinely think it will overtake and replace filmmaking, then you are out of your mind.

There will always be a purpose for Universals lots, to consider it viable that it won’t matter is insane.

 

[Clive]

I predict that in the future AI will replace most traditional film making. Universal might not need the backlot sets anymore and could expand the theme park or even add a second gate.

Hahaha no it won't.

 

[Michael S]

I predict that in the future AI will replace most traditional film making. Universal might not need the backlot sets anymore and could expand the theme park or even add a second gate.

Uhhhhh, no. It won’t.

 

[Red Carpet]

Is AI in it's current state good enough to replace Hollywood filmmaking? No. But it seems like many people make the false assumption that technology will remain relatively static over the coming years. AI tech is advancing rapidly. Each year AI video will be much better and more capable than the previous year. Eventually I expect technology to get to the point where you can give a prompt to your TV and it will spit out a Hollywood quality movie.

 

[Clive]

Is AI in it's current state good enough to replace Hollywood filmmaking? No. But it seems like many people make the false assumption that technology will remain relatively static over the coming years. AI tech is advancing rapidly. Each year AI video will be much better and more capable than the previous year. Eventually I expect technology to get to the point where you can give a prompt to your TV and it will spit out a Hollywood quality movie.

Yeah, no. You don't appear to understand how the technology works or its limitations - or you're trying to sell us something. None of that is happening.

 

[Freak]

I’m getting flashback to the late 90’s/early 00’s when the talk was that CGI would replace all practical effects and even to this day, practical effects are preferred no matter how advanced CGI is.

In the same vein, AI ain’t gonna replace legit filmmaking. People want sincerity.

 

[belloq87]

In fairness, there was extremely apocalyptic rhetoric coming from the guilds on this subject during the strikes.

I have no idea what the eventual limits of AI's capabilities to generate truly photo-realistic footage are, or when those limits might be reached. I also don't think that has any bearing on decisions being made for the Studio Tour at this time.

 

[Red Carpet]

I also don't think that has any bearing on decisions being made for the Studio Tour at this time.

This is true. Universal has said they are soon going to announce a new Studio Tour attraction.

 

[belloq87]

Len Testa says he's heard the Supercharged replacement on the Tour is going to be BACK TO THE FUTURE.

Make of that what you will!